The View From Here
by blossomjaj988
Summary: The balcony in the West Wing had an amazing view as Anna knew well from her childhood. Revisiting it now, it has an even better view than before.


The balcony on the third floor in the West wing had been off limits for Anna for most of her life. For majority of the time, Anna merely thought it was just to keep her safe; seeing as she had a dangerous habit of falling from high places. It wasn't really her fault she would get curious and want to climb, it just kind of happened. So did the falling. Either way the balcony had been closed off from her by orders of her parents, the real reason not exposing itself till years later after a certain incident at a coronation.

Nevertheless, just because something was restricted, doesn't mean she couldn't still do it. The order had made Anna more curious, causing her to become sneaky. Though there were several occasions when she had to lie through a small smile that she was just wondering around the halls because she was bored, Anna still managed to escape to the forbidden place.

The balcony was a beautiful place for more than one reason. When she was little, she loved it for its' view of the village. She could just see over the wall with her small size, seeing the tops of the houses and shops peeking over the protective structure. In between lunch and her writing lessons, Anna would stare at the structures, wondering if the rest of the small buildings matched their beautiful tops. As she grew she was able to see more and more of the hidden structures, piecing together the buildings that had hid from her. Not only was the village in view now, but also the fjord could be seen glimmering in the sun. Anna had found a new habit in coming in the early morning to watch the large, white sails rise and move with the early morning breeze.

One particular morning, she actually noticed the colors that came with the awakening sun. In awe of its beauty and wonder of the brightly painted colors that covered the sky, she found a reason to sometimes get up early in the morning. But not every morning, a girl needed her sleep. A forest was noticed one afternoon to the far side of the balcony after leaning maybe a bit too far than her parents or anyone would like. The top of the trees stretched above the wall, making her wonder why she had never noticed them before. She would lean every so often to view them, wanting to answer their beckoning call to be climbed.

Night was a different story. After one particular afternoon of extra long practice of French, she was unable to go to the balcony at her usual time. So, getting an idea in her head like most young people do, she decided she would make up for it that night. Oh, how the view had changed. The stars seemed to twinkle brighter there, not hidden behind the large glass window like in her room. The moon seemed bigger here, seeming to smile down at her as she laid on the floor smiling up at it. The fjord mirrored the sky, making Anna gape at its beauty. The village was quieter but the lights coming from within its' buildings created a little trail of lights leading around to the other side of the castle. After thinking about what could possibly sit on the other side, Anna had once again leaned a little too far for comfort to spot the large, white mountain. She couldn't see all of it, but she saw enough. Trees seemed to sparkle with the stars as the white powder that sat around them seemed to be covered in glitter. It was a special and beautiful sight, making her wonder what it would look like up close.

One particular morning, Anna had found herself free from any duties. No diplomats had come for a visit, no trade meetings in need of her presence, and Elsa was busy writing away in her study about a possible trade agreement with some foreign country Anna had never heard of herself; making the castle quiet and empty. Looking out of her window, eyeing the village from where she stood, a memory appeared in her mind. Smiling, she dressed quickly and swiftly made her way to her special place. No longer restricted from anything in her home, Anna skipped towards the wing, excitement filling her as she saw the familiar door come into view. Making haste, she threw open the door and ran up the small flight of stairs. She stood in front of the small glass doors that sat before her at the top. Smiling, she gripped the handle and stepped out into the brisk, cool morning air.

The sun shown brightly here, as it usually did. The sky a beautiful shade of blue and the clouds sat as though they were painted into there. Walking to the railing, Anna couldn't help but close her eyes as the breeze caught her hair. It was so warm, so comforting, so perfect; just like she remembered. As the breeze died down, Anna opened her eyes to view the familiar surroundings. Looking out into the village, she could see the people beginning to open shop and start their day. She could see the bakery, its chimney bellowing smoke from the stove oven that sat inside it. She could remember the day her and Kristoff had gone in and had a snack there. The pastries had been so warm and sweet, the cookies had melted in her mouth and the owner had been nothing but kind to the pair. She laughed as she remembered the embarrassment of Kristoff when he realized he had a large amount of cream left on his cheek.

Going down the line, she saw the old woman who ran the bookshop busily sweeping in front of her door. The petite lady with her crooked glasses had called out Anna on multiple occasions for reading too loud. It wasn't exactly her fault that she wanted Kristoff to hear every word and understand every piece of the books she found. Being stuck in the same library for years had limited her amount of readings to political novels and history books. Finding things of fairy tales and far off places had made her excitement bubble, and reading them aloud just topped it off.

Across the street sat the dress shop, the one her and Elsa had visited on multiple occasions. Anna watched as the bubbly woman walked out, waving to the crooked librarian across the street. She couldn't help but giggle as the old woman peered through her glasses at her neighbor, waving with much less enthusiasm at her. When Anna had gone with Elsa one free afternoon to the shop to explore some options for possible ball gowns, the lovely woman had been more than helpful and kind to them as they wondered around the shop. They had found several gowns, all prettier than the next. But what had made it special was how the woman had treated both of them as equals. So many people in the market usually stopped and stared, hesitant to talk to them or to even walk near them. It was mostly in aw, they knew that, but it was still disappointing at times. So, to have this bubbly young women not hesitate to speak her mind about a dress they tried on, to give suggestions, to help them into their dress, to talk to them as a normal person; was a breath of fresh air.

They had found several gowns that day and had promised the lady to come again really soon. Which they now did every time an event was coming up or if they just needed a sisterly afternoon. The woman was always kind, always smiling, and always happy to greet them both. Looking over to the docks, Anna could see the few fishermen and shipmen preparing for the day. She spotted the ship that her and Kristoff had walked by just the other day. They had held hands, talking about who knows what because at the moment Anna was just enjoying the time they were spending. They had spent that afternoon walking up and down the docks, talking over anything and everything, saying hello to whoever passed, enjoying the view of the fjord, and all the while holding hands. She looked at the end of the dock, remembering how they had ended that day sitting with their feet in the cool water, leaning against each other as they enjoyed the sun go down. Smiling to herself, she remembered how he had looked down at her, brushed her cheek with his hand and had kissed her. It was a soft, passionate kiss; one that made Anna's heart flutter even now. When they had pulled apart, he was smiling and his face was as red as a cherry as they heard the sailors hooting at them. Anna had laughed, ignoring the calls, and leaned her head against his shoulder; enjoying the moment.

Walking around to the back, she leaned over to see the trees. Those dumb trees. They had looked so inviting to her and she just had to climb them. He had told her she would hurt herself, seeing as her record with climbing things wasn't exactly the best. She had ignored his concern, as usual, and paid for it too. Anna felt the scar that now sat on her right knee. It wasn't her fault the branch had just given way and how was she supposed to know there was a smaller branch just below that would graze her knee. At least she had landed in his arms, laughing as she saw the look of "I told you so" on his face. It wasn't until she had stood and felt something against her knee that the laughing had died down. It was then she had decided that Kristoff was so cute when he got concerned. That's mostly the reason why she kept climbing those trees. Plus, her curiosity always got the best of her.

Leaning back onto the floor, Anna went to the other side and leaned over once again. She could just see the mountains behind the castle covered in fresh white snow and the few trees that were covered in the same beautiful white. It was so pretty from here, and it was even prettier up close as Anna knew so well. There were trails up and down that mountain from where she and Kristoff had explored. Though Kristoff knew the rocky feature like the back of his hand, they still found time to roam across it and find spots that he actually had never knew about. They had found secret spots within the trees, up high on hills, inside hidden caves, and the always-majestic frozen waterfall from their first trip before. They were all secret to them, or so they liked to think. With every new place came more exploration. Looking to see what the place held, what secrets were kept there, and what the trees and snow hid before them. It was always an adventure, a fun adventure that had started with one so long ago.

Coming back to the middle of the balcony, Anna once again felt the breeze against her face. Smiling, she closed her eyes, taking in what she had around her; all the buildings, the trees, the snow, the fjord, and the memories, all of it. The view had changed from how she remembered it. The view had grown in her eyes. There was so much more lying before her than what she remembered as a child; so many new things, so many new memories. Anna couldn't help but sigh happily as the breeze picked up again. Warm hands came around her waist, arms squeezing lightly as she felt someone lean against her.

"Hey." Kristoff spoke softly in her ear, resting his head onto her shoulder. Anna leaned her head against his as she opened her eyes to see his brown ones looking at her,

"Hi." She whispered. They stood in silence for a moment, her looking at him as he smiled at her. With a kiss on her shoulder he looked out,

"Trying to escape?" He said with a chuckle. Anna smiled at him and looked back out,

"No," she said with a sigh. The breeze came back again and she closed her eyes as she whispered back, "Just enjoying the view."


End file.
